The Eldritch Files

Han Su charged up to the fourth floor without a backward glance. He followed the familiar, deathly silent corridor to the third room, opened the door, and stepped inside. Only then did he allow himself a deep breath.

If that half-woman had changed her mind and decided to grab him, the staircase would have been the most dangerous part of his journey.

Conversely, as long as he made it past the staircase and onto a new floor, he was temporarily safe.

Each of these monsters had its own territory. The staircase seemed to be a public area that all of them could enter, but their respective floors were private domains. Under normal circumstances, other monsters wouldn’t dare cross those boundaries—the old butler being the sole exception.

’This kid’s weapon is actually pretty well-made...’

Glancing at the implement in his hand, Han Su steadied his racing heart. He had no idea where the kid found it; it looked like some kind of strange metal with surprisingly sharp edges.

He scanned his surroundings, finding himself surrounded by piles of old toys from various eras and in different styles.

There were dolls, dust-covered plastic soldiers, stuffed puppies, and black electronic spinning tops. And then there were the Puppet Dolls, each half the size of a grown man, dressed in Western-style dresses and displayed one by one inside a glass cabinet that lined the wall.

’Finally made it up...’

Han Su didn’t dare to relax, but his nerves, driven by instinct, were already beginning to hum with anticipation.

The key was on the fourth floor, which meant the door would appear here, too.

Besides, even though the fourth floor had those vexing Puppet Dolls, their master was obese and dull-witted. As long as he was careful, he was confident he could snatch the key from it.

Once he had the key, the door would appear. As long as he passed through that door, it didn’t matter which floor he was on—he would have escaped the Ancient Castle.

He didn’t understand the principles behind it. The door had never been part of the Ancient Castle; it had mysteriously appeared, along with the key, after he happened to save Xu Ji.

’Was it some kind of karmic reward?’

Unfortunately, the current Han Su had no way of investigating the cause behind these phenomena. All he knew was that this was his only hope of escape.

’The Pale Giant’s eyesight is poor, and its movements are slow, but its hearing is extremely sensitive...’

’The dolls in the glass cabinets are alive, but they seem to enjoy their charade. They won’t make a sound unless absolutely necessary...’

’The dolls are malicious toward all living things in this castle, but they aren’t allied with the Pale Giant...’

’And there’s new intel!’

’Last time, after the Pale monster was injured, its flesh and blood suddenly melted and spread like a flowing stream. So this time, unless it’s absolutely necessary, I’d better not hurt it. It’s actually easier to deal with when it’s uninjured...’

’Furthermore...’

’This time, if I manage to avoid the damage it inflicted on my eyes, will that cause a major change in my timeline when I return to the future?’

...

All sorts of information flashed through his mind. There were many things Han Su couldn’t be certain about. He wanted to avoid altering his own timeline too much, but too many factors were beyond his control.

He even thought of the Spell Song Chushi had given him, the one that activated the power in his right eye. Now that his body had reverted to its ten-year-old state, would the Spell even work anymore?

But all of that had to take a backseat to his primary goal: escape.

Lost in thought, Han Su slowed his pace, inching deeper into the room.

In the enormous glass cabinets beside him, Puppet Dolls with uncanny smiles on their faces were ”sleeping” with their large eyes wide open.

The room was large, yet it felt strangely crowded.

Beyond the mountains of toys, he could see the far end of the room, where a large pink bed and a piano stood. Heavy black curtains hung there, looking as if they might have once been pink.

”Manman...”

Han Su slowly came to a halt. He looked toward the side of the large bed, where a small, thin girl was hugging her knees, curled up in a corner. Hearing his voice, she looked up dazedly, her face streaked with tears.

She was the daughter of the Magic Box Group’s chairman, Li Manman.

She was the same ”doll” he had nearly managed to lead out of this fortress last time—a weak but obedient little girl who always tried her best to help.

Han Su noticed that in the nearest cabinet, among the row of Puppet Dolls, a blonde doll’s head had tilted slightly toward him.

It had ”woken up.” It was sizing him up through the glass pane, a smile playing on its lips.

”Shhh...”

Han Su steadied his nerves, looked at Li Manman, and raised an index finger to his lips.

The little girl was clearly terrified, but just as she had every other time Han Su had met her, she reacted quickly. Despite someone suddenly appearing before her, she managed to stifle any noise.

Han Su slowly drew closer and patted her head. An image flashed through his mind: her head being suddenly torn apart just as they had been about to reach the door last time.

He quickly banished the useless emotion, focused on the little girl, and said, ”Manman, I’m here to save you. I know today is your birthday. I also know you have a card from your mom and dad that says they love you.”

”I also know you have the newest toy from the Magic Box Group, one that can fold into many interesting little tools—a magnifying glass, a set square, small pliers... and a mirror.”

”Am I right?”

Li Manman’s eyes slowly widened. She didn’t know Han Su well at all.

But this boy had correctly stated her name and identity, and he even knew what she was carrying. Her doubts vanished. She nodded vigorously, a glimmer of hope shining in her eyes.

”Now, I’m going to get you out of here.”

Seeing her nod, Han Su continued, ”But there’s a monster on guard outside. Before I can rescue you, I need you to do me a favor. Can you do that?”

Li Manman nodded vigorously.

”Good.”

Han Su leaned close to her ear and carefully whispered the crucial instructions, keeping them as simple as possible so she would understand.

Once that was done, he ignored the growing number of awakening Puppet Dolls in the glass cabinets, their strange, excited eyes fixed on him. He crept quietly over to a large cabinet near the door.

He glanced back at the small figure huddled in the corner, and a flicker of hope suddenly ignited within him.

’If I’m only planning on getting one person out, maybe this is the perfect opportunity?’

’I didn’t plan on saving anyone when I came back this time, but the opportunity is right here in front of me. If I can get the key and we can leave this room together, maybe there’s a chance I can get her out of the Ancient Castle too?’

As he thought this, he also reminded himself to stay vigilant.

Han Su slowly clenched his fists, then moved to the doorway. He took two deep breaths and, with a sudden burst of effort, yanked down a nearby cabinet. It crashed to the floor, sending up a cloud of dust and perfectly barricading the door.

Startled by the noise, the plastic dolls in the glass cabinets contorted their faces into impossibly twisted expressions, as if they were screaming silent curses.

The massive crash shattered the dead silence of the fourth floor.

Soon, the sound of heavy flesh dragging across the old floorboards echoed from the hall. The monster was slowly making its way toward their door.

Han Su’s heart hammered in his chest, but he simply closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, his expression was once again impassive. In moments of extreme tension, he had grown accustomed to facing crises with a blank, emotionless face.

The stench of rot began to fill his nostrils. The dragging sound of flesh reached the doorway, and Han Su could hear coarse WHEEZING. He sensed a shadow falling over the entrance from outside, peering in.

Just then, he turned and gave Li Manman the signal.

The small figure stood up, mustered her courage, and walked over to one of the glass cabinets, knocking on it gently.

Seeing her approach, the dolls in the cabinet grew even angrier. The air filled with a shrill, bizarre noise that sounded like their furious curses.

The monster outside could apparently hear this sound. It grew agitated, letting out a low GROWL before shoving hard against the door, trying to force its way into the room to see what was happening. Dust rained down from the impact.

The door was blocked by the cabinet Han Su had toppled. It wouldn’t budge without a great deal of force.

Just then, following Han Su’s instructions, Manman faced the dolls in the glass cabinet, took out her little toy, and unfolded a palm-sized mirror from inside it.

She stood on her tiptoes, aimed the mirror at one of the dolls in the cabinet, and forced it to see its own reflection.

The dolls in the glass cabinet had been in the middle of their silent cursing. They usually feigned stillness whenever more than one person was around, and they showed no fear toward the little girl, Li Manman. Their silent curses were vicious.

But when the mirror was raised to one doll’s eyes, it instantly froze.

Its two plastic eyeballs looked as if they were about to bulge out of their sockets.

It suddenly let out a terrifying shriek. The sound wasn’t what a plastic doll should be able to make; it sounded more like the cry of a desperate, broken girl.

Plastic dolls were afraid of mirrors. It made them break down in despair.

CRASH!

The shriek instantly alarmed the Pale Giant outside.

It abandoned all pretense of grace. With a sudden exertion of immense force, it smashed the door open. The cabinet barricading the entrance flew apart, sending splintered planks flying in every direction. The debris even shattered some of the glass display cases inside the room.